There's a certain amount of comfort staying with the familiar and that's what Grenada and the Grenadines have become for me. So sailing north to St Lucia and onwards to Martinique brings with it a twinge of apprehension .... sailing into the unknown, so to speak. I know Paul doesn't share these feelings - it's all part of the big adventure to him - but it takes me a day or two to settle down into a new island and become comfortable with my new environment .... it's fair to say that I'm not the most intrepid of travellers! That said, Martinique feels like a good place to me and I'm looking forward to exploring.
I also understand that the range of foodstuffs on the island is second to none: there's a daily flight from France ferrying out lots of lovely produce so we plan on restocking the cupboards and freezer whilst we're here. Provisions, for some reason, have been pretty limited in recent weeks .... with a lack of staples like bananas, limes (for rum cocktails!) and even chicken ... unless you can create a tasty meal from their feet, not something I relish! It amazes me that a country that grows bananas can have a shortage, which I'm pretty sure won't be the case in the UK. And also how a pineapple in a British supermarket costs less than £2 even after shipping it all that way, yet to buy one in the Caribbean from a market stall over £6. Something has obviously gone wrong somewhere along the line ....
The high winds finally died down on Thursday last week and so I have relished the last 3 days. Strangley I don't mind what the weather throws at us during daylight hours, whether at anchor or sailing, but as soon as it goes dark I keep everything crossed that it will be a settled night with no fear of dragging anchors, either ours or anyone elses. The charter boat skippers are notorious for not dropping enough chain and also squeezing into spaces that really aren't sufficient to allow adequate swinging room. So we tend to anchor at the back of the pack in the hope that we're out of harms way.
Well we're off ashore now to check in with Customs, enjoy a French breakfast and to post this blog .... so it's almost real time this time!